PM: Arima to be centre of TT

Arima will soon become the virtual centre of the country said PM Dr Keith Rowley, speaking at a function yesterday at La Joya Auditorium to launch East Lake–a private housing project.

He attributed this to abundant landspace for housing, a boost in the road network including access to the coming Toco ferry port, and projects such as the eTeck Park and the UTT Campus at Wallerfield.

Rowley used the occasion to promise that a new committee he chaired would work to unclog official bureaucracy so as to help private housing developers. He effused that projects like the 1,000-unit East Lake, built by Home Solutions, used local materials and labour. He advised individuals to each put aside one-third of their earnings to invest in a house, whereby TT’s housing shortage could be alleviated.

Saying the HDC has as many as 30,000 applicants successfully screened to qualify to buy a public housing unit, Rowley said this need was best met by the private sector as the Government’s financial state meant it could not afford to build 4,000 to 6,000 units per year.

Saying the former administration had built high-end units, deemed public housing, to sell, Rowley said the HDC would now mainly supply low-income housing for rental. Earlier, Housing Minister Randall Mitchell said the HDC’s waiting list was 174,000 people. Past efforts by the HDC to meet the demand had resulted in private developers being chased out.

East Lake at Tumpuna Road, Arima, offers homes from $900,000 to $1.25 million. It is being done in conjunction with TCL, whose subsidiary ReadyMix is supplying the land.